Ajax may have laboured to a 2-2 draw against Shelbourne FC, but Tim Krul still picked out one bright spot in the Amsterdam side: Abdellah Ouazane. The analyst said so on Ziggo Sport.
The draw in Shelbourne did not carry major consequences for Ajax. The Amsterdam side had already won the first leg in the third qualifying round of the Conference League 3-1 last week, so they still go through to the play-offs as expected.
Krul certainly felt Ajax did not play well. But he still spotted "a few small bright spots". "The lads who came on: Tolu, Ouazane...", the former goalkeeper begins, before continuing about the 17-year-old Ouazane.
"He really is a diamond, I think. Hopefully we're going to see a lot more beautiful moments from him. A real diamond."
"It's Ajax, after all: every so often a lad like that comes through. And I think he really is one of those lads again. I think the big clubs are definitely watching him, because he is truly a joy to watch. Supporters come to the stadium for that."
Still, Krul sees one area where the youngster can improve. "That boy ran 70 or 80 metres with the ball a few times. And then in the final moment he maybe needs to keep an overview, because he ended up in complete chaos. But that's what I like about those youngsters."
On Thursday evening, Ouazane came on in the 57th minute to replace Julian Brandt. It was his fifth official match for Ajax.